COVER STORY – ASCENSION
“Let all the earth fear the Lord; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.” (Psalm 33:8)
When we contemplate the greatness and glory of God, how can we do anything but stand in awe of Him? We stand in awe of His power when we see how He created the whole universe and everything in it simply with His Word. We stand in awe of His love when we consider all the good things He has created for us to use, and how He takes care of us daily. We stand in awe of His grace and mercy when we ponder how He gave His only-begotten Son into death for us rather than condemning us forever for our sins.
There is much to stand in awe of when we consider all the qualities of God, not the least of which is His triune nature.
A couple of Jehovah’s Witnesses came to our door, and I talked to them about the Trinity. They pulled out a pamphlet to show me how artists have crudely tried to visualize the Trinity. There were pictures of three headed statues and other ridiculous things. They suggested that the very idea of the Trinity was ludicrous because there is nothing in all the world like it. How can we believe in something we cannot comprehend? How foolish to think that because human beings can’t relate to the Trinity or comprehend it, it can’t be true. We all believe in light. We know it is real, our lives depend on it, yet the greatest scientists still do not fully understand the nature of light. There are many things we know about it, but we can’t fully explain what it is.
God is so vastly greater than we are that we should not expect to be able to comprehend Him. King David writes, “Great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable.” (Psalm 145:3)
There is something wonderful and reassuring about knowing that God is beyond our comprehension.
The fact that He is so much greater than we are makes Him truly worthy of our worship and praise. It also makes us confident that He is able to handle all the problems and questions that are greater than we are. We can fully rely on Him.
The Bible emphasizes over and over that there is only one God, and that God is One. Yet it routinely speaks of three—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—as God. The three are not identical, they are distinct and have their own areas of work for our salvation, yet they are one God. They don’t each make up a part of God, for we read that all the fullness of the Godhead dwells in Christ (Colossians 2:9). How this can be we leave to Him. We simply stand in awe of Him in childlike faith.
When Solomon dedicated the Temple in Jerusalem, he said, “O Lord, God of Israel, there is no God like you, in heaven above or on earth beneath.” (1 Kings 8:23 ESV) How wonderful to know and trust the one and only God over all! We stand in awe of Him, trust Him completely, and give all praise to Him with joyful hearts.
David Reim is pastor of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Vernon, British Columbia.